Shocking allegations about the Journalists Association, which has been led by Nazmi Bilgin for 33 years!

A group of journalists who have resigned from the Journalists Association, which has been managed by Nazmi Bilgin for 33 years without interruption, have made controversial allegations about both the association president and the board of directors in their statement.

ALL ASSETS WERE TO BE TRANSFERRED TO 16 PEOPLE

Ümit Zileli, who shared the details of the statement titled "The Journalists Association is not ownerless," stated the following: "What was not in that statement; for example, the attempt to transfer all the assets of the association to the newly established foundation without the knowledge of all members, even the board of directors, caused great reactions. The objection of the members led to the "foundation deed" being taken to court and is currently being examined by the Court of Appeals. If this foundation is established, all assets would be transferred to a 16-member executive group without the chance of being taken back."

"NO TRACE OF TRANSPARENCY"

For example, the Board of Directors of the "24 Saat Newspaper," which has been published continuously by the Association for 43 years, was sold at a very low price through negotiations held behind closed doors. For example, the existence, use, and expenditure of the association's financial resources were carried out in complete secrecy. There was no trace of transparency in the projects worth millions of liras obtained from the European Union on behalf of the association. A few board members did not provide information about the projects they managed with the salaries they determined themselves, not only to the members but also to other board members, and all information requests were rejected.

WHERE IS 160 MILLION TL?

For example, the whereabouts of the 160 million TL grant received from the European Union and foreign embassies in recent years were questioned with a new statement. Not only that, but the revenues obtained from their own resources were also included in the inquiry. For example, where were the advertisements taken from the 24 Saat newspaper until it was closed, and the revenues obtained from the hotels and villas in Kaş and Ankara Gölbaşı? No one knew because the Association Board of Directors did not provide information even to the Board of Directors Members. For example, were some board members receiving money from EU projects? There was no answer to that either...

RENTAL VILLA FOR 5 THOUSAND TL IN KAŞ

Then, what Nazmi Bilgin did in 33 years came to light:

- He built 5 villas on the land in Kaş and rented them out. How much was the rent for one villa, you may ask? 5 thousand TL! I'm not sure if you can even rent a cabin anywhere with that amount, let alone in Kaş!

- SAS Radisson hotel was built. It is known to generate an annual income of 2.5 million TL. The hotel was charging 350 Euros per night for a room. That's 13,145 TL in Turkish lira!

And all of these were done without a tender. By the way, according to allegations, Nazmi Bilgin usually resides in Kaş, manages the association from there, and occasionally visits Ankara."